Five Possible Finales for Oprah to End her Show
March 29, 2011— -- We knew this day was coming, and now it's official: Oprah Winfrey will air the final episode of her long-running daytime talk show May 25.
Harpo Productions, her Chicago-based company that produces the show, confirmed the final date to The Associated Press. And someone else already has plans to swoop into her Chicago, Ill. studio once its free: Rosie O'Donnell, whose talk show will debut on Winfrey's cable network this fall.
"I'm delighted to welcome Rosie to the studio I've called home for so many years," Winfrey said in a statement. "Speaking from experience, she will be working with the best team in television in one of the greatest cities in the world."
It's only fitting that after 25 years on the air, Winfrey will go out on the 25th, during May sweeps. For all you Oprah addicts, that means less than two months of shows remain before Winfrey calls it quits.
No doubt she will exit with a bang. Winfrey, who is known for her A-list celebrity exclusives and extravagant giveaways, began her final season by surprising her studio audience with an all-expenses-paid, eight-day trip to Australia. Now the talk show guru is working on topping that.
"You have to imagine the final show is the crescendo," said Lacey Rose, The Hollywood Reporter's senior TV writer. "She's been continually able to one-up herself. The final sendoff has to be the ultimate celebration."
Maggie Furlong, AOL's West Coast correspondent, said the finale will be "for the fans," the way the rest of the season has been.
Last week Winfrey tweeted that she was "hard at work planning the final shows" but has so far not divulged any details.
"Oprah has perfected the big surprise," Rose said. "She will find a way to drum up interest and leave everybody guessing."
Since Winfrey isn't talking, we thought it would be fun to come up with five possible scenarios Winfrey could use to end her show.
This Is Your Life
The Queen of Talk has interviewed thousands of guests over 25 years. This finale would turn the tables and put Winfrey in the hot seat.
Not that her fans don't already know every detail of her story, including this year's revelation that she has a half sister, but it would be fun to see the ways -- hair and weight -- Winfrey has changed over a quarter century.
